Installing Dental Crowns

Posted September 28, 2017.

Some people believe that installing a dental crown is as simple as placing a crown on top of a head or a cap onto a bottle of toothpaste, but it’s actually a little more complex than that. There are a few steps involved with installing oral crowns onto pearly whites, and we’ve laid them out here.

Preparing the tooth. Before our dentist can apply your oral crown, they will have to prep the tooth receiving it. This means they’ll mold your tooth — and in a few cases, they’ll install a foundation for the crown — before application. The quantity of tooth the dentist will need to sculpt will depend on the state of your tooth and the type of crown you’ll be having applied.

Creating the impression. Once your tooth has been prepared, we’ll need to create an impression of your pearly whites, either with a mold or through digital means. The impression will be sent to an oral lab where your permanent crown will be fashioned. Although the impression will be fashioned in about five minutes, you can expect to wait a couple of days to a couple of weeks for your crown to be completed — it will be built to last, so the wait is worth it.

Installing the temporary crown. While your permanent crown is being made, you will wear a temporary crown in the spot where your permanent crown will be placed. This is prepared by our oral workshop, is regularly made of plastic, and will be applied with impermanent cement so we can remove it once your permanent crown is ready.

Fitting the permanent crown. After we’ve received your permanent crown from the dental lab, we’ll remove the temporary crown and make sure that the permanent crown is a good fit for your oral cavity. Occasionally the permanent crown will need minor reshaping or polishing before we install it.

Dental crown application may be more complicated than you thought, but the experience won’t be a hard one for you at Cloverleaf Dental Center in Meriden, Connecticut. Call 203-634-8727 now to pencil in your next checkup with Dr. Sheila Poetti to ensure that your dental health future remains bright.